Trout are moving into their winter water
Last weekend I was out of town on a fun ladies fishing trip in Washington and Idaho. While I was gone it rained really hard out here and the entire Deschutes got very muddy. It has now come back into shape and has its normal green hue to it. The White River was super muddy last week, but the colder nights and very little rain have allowed the White River to come somewhat back into shape. This can always change at a moment’s notice, but as of this posting on Friday afternoon the White River is okay.
The weekend weather looks pretty darn nice from a fishing standpoint – almost no wind and temps in the mid-1950s with mostly sunny skies. Fishing reports from today varied, but the latest report I got is that it was quite good out there this afternoon. It gets dark before we can get out of here after work, so we haven’t been able to fish in the afternoon – but we are closed on Sundays now, so we will get a chance to fish a little on weekends.
A whole mixed bag of techniques will work out there – Euro nymphing, dries in the mid-day when we have BWOs coming off, indicator nymphing, dry-dropper fishing, and trout Spey.
The trout are absolutely sliding into their comfy zone now, which is to say that they are favoring slower softer water where they don’t have to work too hard to stay in the zone where the food will float past. Fast riffles will not produce the same way they do in the summer time, so think like a trout and look for the more mellow water.
Steelhead and Salmon fishing remain closed for the remainder of the year. This means that you cannot target either species – so please be certain that your gear is appropriate for trout fishing.
See you on the water!
Amy Hazel and the crew at Deschutes Angler Fly Shop
Thanks for the report, Amy, and happy Thanksgiving to you & John.
Love a good 1950’s temp! Thank you for the report Amy.